Paul could write late in his life that, in response to God’s love and faithfulness to him, he had loved God by obeying God’s instructions to him and being faithful through hard times as well as times of joy. 

Love and faithfulness are companion characteristics of how God relates to us (Exodus 34:6). God’s character as revealed in the Bible can be counted on. That includes God’s holiness. By our sin and rebellion against God, we experience defeat in this life and condemn ourselves for eternity. However, we are offered the opportunity to reverse this course through repentance and faith in the work of Jesus Christ in his death on the cross and resurrection (Psalm 25:10, 1 John 1:9). This is how we can begin participating in God’s love and faithfulness to our blessing, to honor God in this life, and to have satisfaction at the end of our journey on earth (Proverbs 14:22). 

When we trust and surrender to Jesus, we have God’s support during this journey. God’s love and faithfulness watches over us (Psalm 40:11), defends us from our enemies (Psalm 57:3), deals with us mercifully (Psalm 40:11), and guides our paths (Psalm 25:10). God’s love and faithfulness are not limited by time or geography (Psalm 36:5, Micah 7:20).

God wants us to allow the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, so that we too will have love and faithfulness become true of us in our behavior toward God and others (Galatians 5:22). The precious result of participating in God’s love and faithfulness is right standing with God and peace in our hearts (Proverbs 16:6, Psalm 85:10).

Dear Heavenly Father,

I confess that if my end was near today, I could not honestly say, “I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith.” I confess that I have not always controlled my body, especially my tongue, so that I can say, “I buffet my body, so after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” I thank you for the example of the Apostle Paul. Help me through the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit to bear the fruit of self-control so that I can be more effective in ministry. Grant me enough years in my future to make up for the years the locusts have stolen. Help me leave the sinful desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace along with all those who call on Jesus from a pure heart. In the Name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Look up the Scriptures referenced in today’s devotion and begin to get a sense for how love and faithfulness meet together in the character of God. For further study, enter “love faithfulness” into a Bible program such as BibleGateway.com.